A noticeable trend is emerging in Canada as skyrocketing housing prices push young families and early-career workers to leave expensive cities in favor of more affordable regions. Recent data from Statistics Canada revealed that every major city in Ontario, home to some of the country's most expensive homes, experienced a net loss from interprovincial migration for the second consecutive year.
Toronto, the largest city in Ontario, saw a significant exodus of approximately 93,000 residents to surrounding areas and other parts of the province in the 12 months leading up to July 1, 2023. The migration was predominantly driven by individuals under the age of 40, with over 16,000 people relocating to other provinces, particularly those aged between 20 and 39, along with their young children.
Similarly, Vancouver, British Columbia's largest city known for its high cost of living, also reported substantial net losses in migration. Contrastingly, Alberta, a province rich in oil with some of the most affordable housing in the country, experienced the largest gains from interprovincial migration. Cities like Calgary, Edmonton, and others in the province welcomed nearly 46,000 new residents over the same period.
The statistics agency suggested that the allure of more affordable home prices and a positive economic outlook in the prairie provinces made them increasingly attractive to potential homebuyers and job seekers, as compared to the escalating costs in Ontario and British Columbia. Notably, Toronto's housing market witnessed a significant surge during the pandemic and continued to escalate during the data collection period, with the benchmark price for a home in the city currently standing at C$1.128 million ($825,300).